Azrael wrote:Jerry is a perfectly solid spirit. Especially so when it's typically being compared to that *other* spiced rum.

And Kraken is pretty Ok too. It's just that of all the things I can think to do with good rum, I'm always a little disappointed when people decide to spice it.

I kinda just think all spiced rum sucks... but I've never had Ron Zacapa.... Which I hear is pretty much the only one worth drinking. Other than that though I would rather have Bacardi than Sailor Jerry..... And I generally have such good taste in alcohol......

I apologize, 90% of the time I write on the Fora I am intoxicated.

Yakk wrote:The question the thought experiment I posted is aimed at answering: When falling in a black hole, do you see the entire universe's future history train-car into your ass, or not?

I have not found a spiced rum that I'd want to drink neat, but I don't even think Captain Morgan's is so bad. It's alcohol with a flavor and you mix it indiscriminately with strongly-flavored other things. You don't make fancy cocktails with it. You put it in orange-papaya-banana juice blends and doesn't afraid of being sober. It's not usually something I want to do but neither is racquetball and I don't see a reason to hate on racquetball either.

For the record: I find them different enough that I find it odd to call one superior to the other. It's like saying x brand of apple juice is better than y brand of pineapple juice. They're different enough that I wouldn't call one "Superior" to the other. I like both.

Sailor's is comparable directly to Captain What's-His-Name, and it's superior. And Kraken is more comparable to that Captain What's-His-Name tattoo stuff, and Kraken is superior.

The Great Hippo wrote:[T]he way we treat suspected terrorists genuinely terrifies me.

Speaking of rum... well, perhaps this rum I am about to speak of should not be spoken of when also speaking of Sailor Jerry, or Captain Morgan.

Let me start again. I have on my shelf, a bottle of Diplomatico's finest creation, The Ambassador.

The peak of the Diplomatico range, as created by Golden Barrel Awards 2011 Master Rum Blender of the Year, Tito Cordero. Ambassador is matured in ex-bourbon barrels before finishing for a couple of years in Pedro Ximinez casks to give a big, rich and fruity rum.

I have always been a fan of Diplomaticos - sure they're sweet, but they're all pretty good value for money. I'm not sure that applies to The Ambassador, but that's not what one looks for in a drink that comes in a velvet lined wooden case.

I just found out, and I've got to tell you all, well the Brits anyway.Tesco stock Kraken now! only £22.50/70cl which, considering my first bottle set me back over £30, is a bargain, and the only other supermarket that I know stocks it is Sainsbury's where I never shop, so had to go out of my way to get it.http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/ ... =273925686

dshizzle wrote:Had some knob creek for the first time last night, the usual drink is Jack. All I can say is wow. Thanks for the tips fellas.

Try Woodford Reserve at your next opportunity. Or better yet, Blantons. They're preferred compatriots of Basil Hayden's, which is a grown up version of Knob Creek.

If it's the aggressiveness of Knob that you like, look for Bakers or the far superior Bookers. All of them are hot, but each is certainly a trade up over the other. You might also try a decent rye whiskey if you liked Knob, as they tend to have a lot in common. Rittenhouse is often considered the gold standard rye (look for the 100 proof), although Redemption Rye is a surprising newcomer that I've kept on hand since it distribution first reached MA.

Oh, and if you like Jack, go looking for a bottle of George Dickel. It's a Tennessee like Jack that is generally considered superior in quality.

So, I've read that you should store wine on it's side if it has a real-wood cork so that the cork doesn't dry out and crumble into the wine or shrink and let in oxygen. Is there any reason not to do this for a bottle of scotch that has a real-wood cork?

"There's spray paint on the teleprompterAnchorman screams that he's seen a monster (mayday)There's blood stains on his shirt (mayday)They say that he's gone berserk."--Flobots "Mayday"

Also the issue with wine has less to do with crumbling or shrinking and more to do with the fact that cork, by nature, is not air-tight. If the bottle of wine is unopened (read: sealed with plastic, foil, wax, etc. in addition to the cork) there's no air transfer. Once you open it you only need to store it in such a way that the liquid in the bottle is in contact with the cork to prevent significant air transfer which will spoil your left-over wine more quickly. Hard liquor can be stored for a long time without turning to vinegar so the same issue doesn't really exist.

So, I liking mixing things with soda (especially Dr. Pepper*), but I'm trying to make some small efforts to reduce my sugar consumption. I like diet soda just fine, but does it work for mixing drinks? I'm worried that it might be overpowered by the booze.

i'd say you can taste the alcohol through diet drinks slightly more, but you could just make them less strong.

Dr Pepper Zero is definitely more "weaker" than Dr Pepper, than Coke Zero for example, though.

if you want to drink to get drunk though, I suggest some really spicy diet ginger beer, sometimes I have Kraken with ginger beer and you can get pretty close to 50/50 before the alcohol flavour actually starts to kick in.

So, I bottled my Tequila Para Mi Amante tonight. The liquid is delicious, though next time I might try using blanco tequila instead of anejo. Anyways, I was wondering if the strawberries would be safe to eat. They've been soaking in tequila for three weeks, so it's not like any bacteria could grow on them right?

"There's spray paint on the teleprompterAnchorman screams that he's seen a monster (mayday)There's blood stains on his shirt (mayday)They say that he's gone berserk."--Flobots "Mayday"

SurgicalSteel wrote:So, I bottled my Tequila Para Mi Amante tonight. The liquid is delicious, though next time I might try using blanco tequila instead of anejo. Anyways, I was wondering if the strawberries would be safe to eat. They've been soaking in tequila for three weeks, so it's not like any bacteria could grow on them right?

SurgicalSteel wrote:So, I bottled my Tequila Para Mi Amante tonight. The liquid is delicious, though next time I might try using blanco tequila instead of anejo. Anyways, I was wondering if the strawberries would be safe to eat. They've been soaking in tequila for three weeks, so it's not like any bacteria could grow on them right?

I should think they'd be fine.

And so they are. Wow, they're strong though.

"There's spray paint on the teleprompterAnchorman screams that he's seen a monster (mayday)There's blood stains on his shirt (mayday)They say that he's gone berserk."--Flobots "Mayday"

I went to UK Rumfest at ExCeL in London on Saturday, fun was had, but boy was it busy. I wasn't really impressed by any of the rums to be honest, it's a shame Kraken wasn't represented there.I had some Gosling's Black Seal with ginger beer, and that was probably one of the nicer drinks I had on the day, i tried some nice sipping rums but none stood out as better than Kraken, and I can't for the life of me remember what they were

So I ended up grabbing a bottle of Ron Zacapa 23. Not sure it deserves the "best rum EVAR" accolades it seems to have gotten, but it is indeed an excellent aged sipping rum.

Tasting notes:

Nose: Not much here. Very pungent and almost medicinal (one whiff reminded me a lot of rubbing alcohol for some reason). Maybe some cocoa or spice as well.

Body: Very smooth, buttery, rich, and oily.

Palate: Cocoa, coffee, and vanilla are the dominant flavors. Also some spice, and a little woody. Some butter, toffee, and nougat maybe?

Finish: Long. Starts off spicy, then comes in with a nice butter flavor. Fruity notes, almost like a fine wine, come in at the end.

All in all, a complex, excellent rum that is smooth as hell. Well worth the $50 it cost me. I still think I like Ron Pampero Aniversario better, but I haven't been able to get that in a while (I don't know if anyone in Ohio sells it; certainly not in Columbus). Would be interesting to do a side-by-side.

Coming from California, Ohio liquor prices suck. Everything is at least $5-10 more expensive, and sometimes much more. Nobody competes on price, either, becuase it's all at the state minimum. I did manage to find the Flor de Cana white rum you recommended to me a while back, though, and that was very good too.